Staff Editorial: A new chapter in history
Our View: The university is taking a positive step forward in addressing its ties with slavery by introducing a class on the period.
Staff Editorial
Issue date: 2/8/08 Section: Opinion
After being condemned for so long for its lack of regret for the involvement of slaves in its history, the university is finally stepping up and taking responsibility in a major way. Not only is the university offering to research its ties to slavery, but it is also including students and faculty in the quest for the truth.
It is undeniable that slavery played a major part in the construction of our university, and the long silence from the president's office is finally being corrected, showing a positive effort to make amends for our history. And with these major steps now behind it, the university must continue to make strides by reaching its goals in a timely manner.
Offering a research-based class relying on undergraduate students to uncover and document the university's antebellum ties to slavery is a bold step, but it could fall flat if students who might be hesitant to voice opinions or level criticism at the university are selected. After observing years of students recruited to countless committees and student government positions appearing unwilling or unable to see the bigger picture - no matter how unpopular - and take a stand that will better the university, there is reason to be concerned. However, we have confidence in history professor Ira Berlin and archivist Anne Turkos who, in a meeting with Diamondback editors expressed their dedication to seeking out uncomfortable truths.
As Berlin noted Wednesday, the past is not just the past - it is part of us. We're hopeful students selected to perform the research will not shy away from controversy and will harness their diversity and individuality to bring together eclectic opinions in discussions about the university's beginnings. After all, these students will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the university sees itself, how it reaches out to others and how it encourages dialogue among members of the campus community.
Aside from those challenges, the students will be charged with overcoming lost, destroyed or buried historical documentation and making key judgments about its accuracy and reliability. For this effort to succeed both academically and efficiently, the class will have to seek to avoid constantly bashing the university for its use of slaves, but rather focus on the fact that the university is actively pursuing an effort to come to terms with its past. This effort shouldn't be about guilt; it should be about acknowledgment that the university may have once been involved in a reprehensible institution and seeking out justice, both for the past and for the future.
It is undeniable that slavery played a major part in the construction of our university, and the long silence from the president's office is finally being corrected, showing a positive effort to make amends for our history. And with these major steps now behind it, the university must continue to make strides by reaching its goals in a timely manner.
Offering a research-based class relying on undergraduate students to uncover and document the university's antebellum ties to slavery is a bold step, but it could fall flat if students who might be hesitant to voice opinions or level criticism at the university are selected. After observing years of students recruited to countless committees and student government positions appearing unwilling or unable to see the bigger picture - no matter how unpopular - and take a stand that will better the university, there is reason to be concerned. However, we have confidence in history professor Ira Berlin and archivist Anne Turkos who, in a meeting with Diamondback editors expressed their dedication to seeking out uncomfortable truths.
As Berlin noted Wednesday, the past is not just the past - it is part of us. We're hopeful students selected to perform the research will not shy away from controversy and will harness their diversity and individuality to bring together eclectic opinions in discussions about the university's beginnings. After all, these students will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the university sees itself, how it reaches out to others and how it encourages dialogue among members of the campus community.
Aside from those challenges, the students will be charged with overcoming lost, destroyed or buried historical documentation and making key judgments about its accuracy and reliability. For this effort to succeed both academically and efficiently, the class will have to seek to avoid constantly bashing the university for its use of slaves, but rather focus on the fact that the university is actively pursuing an effort to come to terms with its past. This effort shouldn't be about guilt; it should be about acknowledgment that the university may have once been involved in a reprehensible institution and seeking out justice, both for the past and for the future.
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randall stevens
posted 2/08/08 @ 9:36 PM EST
why does any of this matter at all? the university is taking "a positive step forward" by "addressing its involvement with slavery"?
Why does it matter now? No one in the oldest of generation alive or even several before theirs was involved in slavery. (Continued…)
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